An Unexpected Development
by PixieWillow
Summary: When Hermione wakes up on May 3rd, she doesn't remember a thing from the night before, apart from the fact that she was extremely drunk. When she realises that she isn't in her own bed and realises whose bed she's in, she vows never to tell anyone what happened. That turns out to not be as easy as it seemed though.
1. Prologue

**An Unexpected Development.**

**Prologue : May 2nd**

Hermione had never done anything like this before. But why not ? After the last couple of years, she deserved a break. Getting drunk was normal for teenagers, right ? As she started on her 3rd glass of vodka-orange, she realised that she already felt dizzy. So much for being able to handle it. But if she wanted to be able to get through the first celebration of the end of the war, she was going to have to use a bit of liquid courage, so she kept going.

* * *

As the night wore on, she realised just how bad she was at drinking, but she was already past caring. Hermione was dancing just like everyone else at the celebration. With masks on it was hard to recognise who you were actually dancing with though. Not that she minded. It was rare for her to let go and have fun. Why couldn't she forget everything that had happened for one evening ? She started dancing with a tall man that she couldn't quite place. He seemed nice though. At least from what she could tell in her current state of mind. He really was a great dancer.

* * *

They must have danced together well into the night. Neither of them was ever without a drink. When they finally left the celebration together they headed to his place. It was a good thing really, because Hermione could hardly remember where she lived. He lead the way and all Hermione felt was anticipation and excitement. She had never done this kind of thing before. She was too drunk to even care who's house she was going too : she liked him, he seemed nice enough. Hermione needed a distraction and she had found it.

* * *

When Hermione woke up with a banging headache the next morning, she couldn't remember a thing that had happened that night. All she knew was that she was naked in someone's bed and she didn't know whose. She definitely let go then. She slowly turned over, not wanting to wake the person next to her. What she saw then made her realise that she might have made a massive mistake. Lying in the bed next to her was someone she had never expected to see in that way. He definitely wasn't a stranger. She slowly got out of bed, got dressed and left, desperately trying not to wake the man still asleep in his bed. No-one could ever find out about what had happened that evening, Hermione knew that much.


	2. An Unexpected Illness

**Chapter One : An Unexpected Illness.**

_Welcome back to An Unexpected Development. I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it !_

_I'm posting this on the same day because of how short the prologue was. I hope this chapter gives you a better feel of where the story is going !_

_PixieWillow x_

**June 20th :**

When Hermione woke up that morning to a ruckus going on outside her apartment, she had only one thought in mind : that she was going to be sick . She was always able to tell when she was going to vomit and today she could feel it in her stomach. When she was awake enough to realise that the ruckus outside was actually someone banging very loudly and very rudely on her door, she slowly made her way out of her bedroom. She had no desire to shake up her stomach more than it already was, so she took her time going to the door. When she opened the door to a very angry, fiery redhead she realised that she was in a lot of trouble.

''Finally you answer the door ! I've been stood here knocking for at least 20 minutes ! What were you even doing ? Have you completely forgotten that you were supposed to meet me in Diagon Alley 2 hours ago ? I can't believe you Hermione !'' screamed Ginny, barging into the apartment and past her bestfriend, who stood there in shock at the rant.

Before Ginny could continue shouting at her, Hermione felt a sudden urge to run to the bathroom. As soon as she got to the toilet she was sick, expulsing everything she had eaten the day before from her body. When she had finished, and after a small amount of dry heaving, Hermione turned to her bestfriend who was standing in the bathroom doorway, looking sheepish.

''I'm really sorry for shouting at you like that Hermione. Are you okay ?'' she asked, obviously worried for her friend.

''I've felt better,'' replied Hermione with a small smile, ''I must have caught a stomach bug''.

''You should really try and sleep it off. I'll go to Mum's and get you some of your favourite chicken soup, you know how great it is when you feel ill. I'm sure she can cook some up in no time.'' Ginny always rambled on when she was worried, it was one of the more adorable aspects of her personnality. It almost made you forget about her scary side. Almost. After helping Hermione back to bed, Ginny left for the Burrow, hoping that the chicken soup really would help Hermione.

* * *

Only a few hours later, Hermione woke up to a horrific smell wafting in from her kitchen. Before she had time to think, she ran to the bathroom, feeling a desperate need to vomit. The only problem with that plan was that her stomach was entirely empty, having not eaten anything since her last spell of vomiting. After dry heaving for what felt like hours, Hermione made her way towards her kitchen, only breathing through her mouth. What she saw there surprised her. In her kitchen, fluttering around like a housewife, was Ginny Weasley. Anyone who knew her also knew that she was anything but a housewife. In any case, when Ginny noticed Hermione walking in she gave her a radiant smile. She looked like she'd been made to be a housewife in that moment. Only in that moment though. After wiping her brow, Ginny smiled again at her bestfriend, gesturing for her to sit down.

"I brought you some of Mum's soup. It should really help to calm your stomach. I know how much you love chicken soup as well," she remarked. All Hermione could do was nod for fear of gagging. She was struggling to stand the smell of the soup, that she usually adored. That was one of the reasons she hated being ill. Why couldn't comforting smells stay comforting instead of making you feel even worse?

"How do you feel right now?" inquired Ginny with a sympathetic and knowing smile.

"I feel like I've been hit by a train, only worse. Like I've been hit by a train, a bus and then a train again. It's also like my stomach is on a rollercoaster. I hate being ill." replied her bestfriend.

''You should eat some of this," Ginny offered, placing the bowl of soup in front of Hermione, "it should truly make you feel better. At least you'll have something to puke up if need be!" Hermione knew how hard her bestfriend was trying, so she slowly took a mouthful. Ginny continued: "I thought I'd let you know that Harry is planning on popping by in a while to check on you. You know how worried he gets when you're ill."

Hermione, not trusting herself to speak without regurgitating what she just ate just smiled and nodded at Ginny. After bringing the third spoonful of soup to her mouth she realised that she may have made a mistake by trying to swallow the soup to be nice to Ginny. Without giving her friend any notice, she stood up and ran to the bathroom, bypassing Harry who had just entered the apartment.

She sunk to the bathroom floor, vomiting in the toilet, only to find that hardly anything would come out. Harry, who had followed her automatically, was holding back her hair and slowly rubbing circles on her back, trying to soothe his aching bestfriend. Ever since the war, Harry had been very protective of all of his friends, especially Ron, Hermione and Ginny. He was prepared to do anything in order to not run the risk of loosing them.

As Hermione slowly stopped dry heaving and started sobbing, Harry put his arms around her and brought her close to him. Although he would have felt extremely uncomfortable in this position a few years ago, Harry was now completely at ease hugging Hermione like this. They were closer than they had ever been after the Final Battle. Everything had just clicked into place since then and they never felt awkward around each other. They spent what felt like hours curled up together on Hermione's bathroom floor until she had cried out all the tears in her body and slowly fell asleep. When Harry was sure that she wouldn't wake, he lifted her up slowly and carried her to her bedroom. He laid her down under her covers, surrounded by mountains of pillows. She didn't even stir when he tucked her in and quietly left her in the world of dreams.


	3. An Unexpected Appointment

Chapter Two : An Unexpected Appointment.

Hello! Welcome back to An Unexpected Development. I'm really excited about this chapter! We finally delve into the main storyline of this fic!

Thank you Elwyn Ryder for your review: don't worry I've done my research on the topic, so it's entirely possible!

Happy reading friends! PixieWillow x

July 1st:

After over 10 days of feeling like crap constantly, Hermione had had enough. She couldn't deal with being ill for that long. What kind of illness was so relentless? It didn't make sense. After being pressured by everyone around her, Hermione finally did something that she absolutely detested doing: she made a doctor's appointment. For years now, she only associated hospitals with terrible things: disease, near-death experiences. She assumed this was due to the many times she and her friends had ended up in the hospital wing during their years at Hogwarts. She found it really difficult to even think about hospitals. After the Final Battle, everybody had expected Hermione to start training to become a Mediwitch because of her thirst for knowledge, but she couldn't get over the trauma of her school years. It was much easier for her to train to work in the the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. When she was younger, before she was introduced to the Wizarding World, she had always admired lawyers and dreamed of becoming one one day. Studying Magical Law Enforcement was her way of holding on to her childhood dream.

In the end, Harry and Ginny had to forcefully take her to St. Mungo's themselves, because it had become apparent that she wasn't go of her own free will. It took them a while to convince her that they really were doing this for her own good. They were starting to worry about her. It wasn't normal to have a stomach bug for so long and they had no idea what else she could have. They proved to Hermione that her illness was making everyone around her worry and that just wouldn't do. Hermione was angry at them for guilt tripping her into going, but she understood where they were coming from, so she was quick to forgive them.

When they actually got to St. Mungo's, Harry and Ginny were both starting to regret forcing Hermione to go. Not only was she starting to hyperventilate, she was also going a putrid shade of green. If Hermione fainted in the middle of a public place, it would be all over the Daily Prophet the next day, which would make her feel even worse. That was one of the major disadvantages of being not only a war hero, but also a member of the Golden Trio. Harry decided that he was going to have to act fast if he wanted to prevent Hermione from fainting. He headed towards the reception desk as fast as possible, leaving Hermione sitting with Ginny and looking more and more green as time passed.

"Excuse me miss, could we please see a Mediwitch as soon as possible? My friend Hermione is in terrible shape," Harry gently asked the middle aged receptionist at the desk. The woman didn't even look up from what she was doing. It looked like she was completing a crossword puzzle from where Harry was standing.

"I'm sorry. I'm busy, you'll just have to wait in the other room like everyone else!" she replied shortly, still concentrating on her game.

"But miss, it's urgent, she's going to faint, please, Hermione hates hospitals with a passion," Harry answered, worry slowly creeping into his voice.

The receptionist slowly looked up from her game, and noticing who she was dealing with, paled slightly.

"Oh, Mr. Potter sir, I'm so sorry sir, how can I be of service?" she asked, blushing deeper than Harry had thought was possible, and that was saying something because he was dating a Weasley. He hated using his status to get things done, but desperate times call for desperate measures and Harry didn't really have any other choice.

"I need an appointment for Hermione Granger instantly miss, if you please. She's been ill for over 10 days and we have no idea what is going on," Harry said, starting to ramble. He seemed to have picked that up from his girlfriend. The receptionist hurried away and five minutes later she had returned with a doctor. If Harry hadn't known better, he would've thought that the receptionist winked at him as he lead the doctor back to Hermione and Ginny. In the time that he'd been gone, things seemed to have gotten worse for Hermione.

"She's been sick in the bathroom twice," anxiously stated Ginny to both Harry and the doctor. It was easy to see, just by looking at Hermione's face, that things were spiraling downhill. The doctor took one look at her and scooped her up into his arms, leading her away into his office. Both Harry and Ginny ran after the doctor, but he wouldn't allow them inside despite their protests.

"A medical examination is a very personal thing. Whilst she is this delirious I can't be sure whether she wants you here or not, so you'll have to wait outside my door. I'm truly sorry Mr Potter, Miss Weasley," the doctor politely reminded them.

Once the doctor was alone with his patient, he started to question her about her recent illness. After using his wand to search for illnesses he was drawing a blank. Hermione didn't seem to have any of the usual stomach bugs. He tried to use harder spells, searching for stronger diseases, but nothing showed up. The doctor could only think of one diagnosis for Miss Granger and he wasn't sure she was going to like what he had to say.

"Tell me Miss Granger, are you sexually active?" inquired the doctor, hoping that she wasn't too offended by his question. It wouldn't be good for his reputation or his clientele to offend one of the Golden Trio.

Hermione visibly reddened at his question. He felt bad for having embarrassed her, but he had no choice. Hermione tried to compose herself before answering the doctor: "No, I'm.. Oh."

The doctor was completely and utterly confused by what Hermione was trying to say. He was about to say something to the young woman when she suddenly burst into tears, with no explanation for the poor man whatsoever.

"You.. think.. I'm... pregnant?'' wailed Hermione between sobs.

"It's the only plausible explanation for your sickness, Miss Granger. I'm deeply sorry if I've made you feel uncomfortable, it was never my intention." Hermione could tell that she was making the doctor himself uncomfortable and it was making her feel bad.

"I'm sorry for being so unprofessional. You caught me off guard. I suppose the only way to answer the question is to do a test then, isn't it?" said Hermione, desperately trying to stay calm. She felt entirely overwhelmed.

"Yes, Miss Granger. Stand up please," he indicated where she was supposed to stand, wand already in hand. He could tell the young girl was shaking, but couldn't do anything about it, so he proceded to do the necessary tests. "It will take around two minutes now. I'm sorry about the uncomfortable wait. If the test is positive, a plus will appear in front of your stomach. Otherwise, it will be a minus."

Hermione couldn't stand the wait. It felt like she was waiting for a death sentence. She couldn't help letting her mind drift to what she would do if the test was positive. Abortion wasn't an option. She didn't believe in it and anyway, she was an adult, if only by two years in the wizarding world. Lots of people had children at nineteen. Granted, it would be better if she was married, but she didn't even want to think about that. She was repeating a mantra in her head:_ think positive._ Maybe that wasn't the best idea though, because a minute later she felt a funny tingle and before she could react a small plus appeared in front of her stomach. Hermione didn't register what was happening to her until she looked at the doctor. He smiled a sympathetic and reassuring smile at her that didn't make her feel any better. She ran out of the doctor's office, past her friends who were waiting outside the door and rounded a corner without thinking about what she was doing. She kept running. She wasn't running from anyone in particular, just away from her demons. It was as if running would make her forget. She wasn't looking where she was going and she didn't care.

**At least, she didn't care until she ran straight into the back of Draco Malfoy.**

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **

**Just so you know, I have done research into the topic of pregnancy for this fic, and morning sickness usually kicks in after 6 weeks of pregnancy. After around 5 1/2, 6 weeks a doctor can detect a pregnancy. **


	4. An Unexpected Revelation

**Chapter Three : An Unexpected Revelation.**

_Sorry for leaving you on a bit of a cliffhanger at the end of chapter two, it just sounded so cool in my mind to leave it there. I hope you like this chapter !_

_PixieWillow x_

**July 1st :**

_She kept running. She wasn't running from anyone in particular, just away from her demons. It was as if running would make her forget. She wasn't looking where she was going and she didn't care. _

_**At least, she didn't care until she ran straight into the back of Draco Malfoy.**_

Slowly, he started to turn around. If he was surprised by who had just almost knocked him over he didn't let it show.

"Do you always bump into people like that, Granger?" he asked, a hint of humour in his voice despite the usual scowl he had on his face.

The fact that he was making fun of her pissed her off to no end. Now that she thought about it, all her emotions had been heightened for a while now. She should have guessed what was going on, but she had blocked the night she lost her virginity out of her thoughts.

"For your information, Malfoy, no I don't. I do wish I'd bumped into you a bit harder though, I would have loved to see you scrambling around on the floor," she remarked sharply, no hint of humour in her voice, only distaste.

"Everybody knows how hard you want to bump in to me, Granger," replied Malfoy, a mischevous glint in his eye. Having hardly spoken to him since the Battle of Hogwarts, Hermione was surprised at how at ease he seemed. There was only a small part of animosity in his words. Was it possible that Malfoy was actually being civil with her? She didn't want to think about it. Before she had the chance to reply to his rude remark, Harry and Ginny came running around the corner.

"There you are Hermione! We've been...," Ginny cut off noticing who was standing next to her.

"Malfoy, how are things?" inquired Harry, who had been training as an auror with Malfoy for over 6 months.

"I'm very well, Potter. I do have to get going though. Try to be less clumsy next time, Granger," he reprimanded Hermione, but with a snarky grin on his face.

"What was that about?" demanded Harry once Malfoy had left.

"I wasn't looking where I was going and I acidentally bumped into him. He seemed to be having a brilliant time making fun of me," pondered Hermione.

"Weirdly, Malfoy actually has a slight sense of humour. I've noticed that since we started training. Who would've thought that, hey?" Harry exclaimed. He hadn't forgotten what he was following Hermione for though. "What happened to you anyway? When the doctor took you into the room you still looked like you were going to faint and now you're running around the hospital? What did he diagnose you with?" he questioned.

Ginny could tell that all the questioning was making Hermione tense, so she put her hand on her boyfriend's arm, signifying that he should take a break.

"Do you want us to take you home Mione?" she asked. Of course, she wanted to pry, but she thought it best to wait until Hermione was in a comfortable environment.

"I.. Yes please. I'm not sure I'm in the right mindset to get home on my own," she said quietly, seeming a bit lost.

* * *

When she got back to her flat, all Hermione wanted to do was go to sleep. She had a lot of things to think about. She left Harry and Ginny in her living room and headed to bed.

By the time she woke up it was already dark outside. Hermione could smell food cooking in her kitchen, so she assumed that Harry and Ginny were still waiting for her. It took her a lot of effort to climb out of her bed, but when she did, she grabbed her dressing gown and headed towards the kitchen. She thought she could smell chicken. Despite being starving, she still couldn't stomach the smell of chicken. She now understood why.

As she walked into her kitchen, she realised that there was one more person in her flat than when she'd gone to bed. When she noticed his bright red hair, she couldn't have been more happy to see the gangly goofball.

"Ron!" she cried. She hadn't seen the redhead for two months as he'd been in constant Quidditch training. She couldn't believe that he was actually there. She threw herself into his arms, catching him off guard. Her gangly bestfriend smiled down at her. They weren't used to spending so much time apart.

"Hey Mione. Are you feeling better?" Ron asked.

When he asked that question, everything came back to her. May 2nd. The doctor's appointment. The baby. She was so surprised at having forgotten that she just stared into space for a while, ignoring everyone around her.

"Hermione? Are you in there?" Ron poked her in the ribs hard enough to jolt her back to reality.

"Ouch Ronald, what was that for?" she wondered out loud, slightly angry at him.

"You completely zoned out you crazy woman," replied the redhead, "what else was I supposed to do?" To that Hermione just shrugged.

"What are you cooking Harry?" she asked, changing the subject. There was no way she was strong enough to get into her "illness" before having some food.

"Your favourite, of course," replied the other part of the Golden Trio, "I thought that a chicken roast would make you feel better. It always does." Her bestfriend was so thoughtful that Hermione didn't have it in her to tell him that she couldn't stomach chicken at the moment. She would just have to eat the vegetables and yorkshire puddings and hope no-one would notice that she wasn't eating her favourite part of the meal. For some reason, she wasn't very confident that that would work.

* * *

Once they sat down to eat, Hermione knew that they were going to start questioning her. She wasn't sure that she was ready to answer their questions quite yet and she wasn't sure that she knew how to avoid them. As soon as they were all seated at the table, she took control of the conversation, directing countless questions towards Ron: "how is quidditch?", "have you met anyone recently?"... The list of questions she asked him was endless. The problem with that tactic was that Ron wasn't one to talk much, meaning that by the time she had no more questions they weren't even halfway through their meal. No-one seemed willing to make Hermione upset though, so they didn't start questioning her during the meal. They didn't even comment on the fact that Hermione didn't eat her chicken. She could tell that something was up and she wasn't excited to find out what her friends were planning.

At the end of dinner, she helped Harry do the washing up. Her flat was too small to get a dishwasher, so doing the dishes by hand was a welcomed distraction. She still wasn't ready to answer her friend's questions, but she didn't have any other ideas, so she was just going to have to deal with it and answer once Harry started asking. They'd only washed a few dishes when he sprung his first question on her.

"Are you okay Mione?" he asked, his voice full of worry. She didn't like making her bestfriend worry about her, but she was so scared of admitting the truth out loud. It would make everything feel so much more real. "You seemed really shaken up when we were at the hospital this afternoon," he continued.

"I... I learned something difficult to take in. I felt so lost. I thought I could run away from what I was feeling, so I tried," she replied. She was going to have to admit the truth to him at some point. She was planning on telling him the truth the same way that you get into a swimming pool: slowly edging your way in and then taking the final plunge.

"Are you ill? Are we going to lose you?" Hermione could tell that she wasn't going about it the right way. She was only making her bestfriend worry more than he should be. "Do we need to find the best doctors? Because I can and I will. I'll do everything in my power to find the doctors who can treat your disease, I promise, I-"

Hermione cut him off before he could go any further. "Shut up, Harry! I'm pregnant!" she screamed. She heard three intakes of breath instead of only Harry's. Well shit. Maybe she should have screamed a little less loudly. She slowly turned around to see her other two friends standing in the door frame. Ginny looked totally and utterly shocked, but it was seeing Ron's face that destroyed Hermione. He looked absolutely distraught. She didn't want to think about the reasoning behind his reaction at this point in time. She felt too confused as it was. She finally turned back to Harry, trying to judge his reaction. If Ginny had looked shocked, it was nothing compared to Harry. Not only did he look shell shocked, he looked completely confused. His confusion was entirely understandable. No-one had seen Hermione with a man other than the Golden Trio in the last year.

"I... What? What are you talking about Hermione?" Ginny was the first of the three to have regained her composure. "Are you seeing someone that we don't know about?" she asked gently.

Hermione kept her eyes on the kitchen tiles. "No" she said quietly, tears forming in her eyes already. Both Harry and Ginny moved towards her looking to comfort her and understand. Hermione looked towards Ron, but he was nowhere to be seen. The last of Hermione's self-control disappeared. She started sobbing. Her two bestfriends took her in their arms, letting her cry. They knew when to stay quiet, proving how well they knew her.

When they had finally managed to calm her down they moved into the living room. Ron was still nowhere to be seen, but Hermione was doing everything she could not to dwell on that.

"Hermione?" Ginny asked gently, " do you think you're well enough to tell us what's going on?"

"I.. I can try. I haven't come to terms with it myself yet to be honest. I've not even started reading up about it. I really should start, I'm mean I'm already two months pregnant, I should have started reading about it ages ago. What if I've put my child in danger? Oh Merlin, I'm going to be a terrible mother. What am I -"

"Hermione stop! You don't need to start fretting. You'll be a great mother. Tell us what happened. We can help you with this." Ginny was using soothing terms to try and calm her bestfriend down. Harry wasn't much help, he still looked like he'd seen Voldemort's ghost. "Block your ears Harry, but Hermione, I thought you were still a virgin!" Ginny stated, ignoring Harry's disgusted protests as he hadn't taken her advice.

"I was," replied Hermione, going bright red in the face. She wasn't used to talking about this kind of thing, especially not with Harry around, "the key word being was. I got drunk at the First Anniversary celebration..."

"Oh no, Mione. That's not the way to do it. We really should have paid more attention to what you were doing..." Ginny exclaimed, full of remorse. She felt as if it was their fault in some way.

"It's not your fault that I got drunk and started dancing with a stranger. Or at least, I thought he was a stranger because of his mask..." Her friends looked at each other, a questioning look in their eyes.

"Hermione.. It's not Ron is it?" asked Harry, his face bright red as well. At least she wasn't the only one that colour.

"What? Harry, of course not! Oh for Merlin's sake, are you really going to make me tell you?" she exclaimed, desperate not to tell her friends who exactly fathered her baby.

"Hermione, if you don't tell us we can't help you at all" Ginny tried to explain to her bestfriend. She was starting to lose her patience, but that wouldn't do anyone any good.

"Please Hermione. Who was it?" Harry implored. He couldn't bear not being able to help her.

"Fine. Draco. Draco Malfoy is the father of my baby."

"WHAT?!" Hermione heard someone shout. She felt like she had just died inside. Ron had just walked back into her apartment.


	5. An Unexpected Proposition

**Chapter Four : An Unexpected Proposition.**

_MY COMPUTER DIED. UGH. WHAT IS LIFE._

_I haven't been able to write/publish anything for the past few months and that is going to continue I'm afraid. I get my new computer for my birthday in January. Here's hoping that this chapter keeps you going in the mean time._

_It's seems like I love writing cliffhangers apparently. I'm sorry about that. But it was a cool ending, don't you think ? I was never actually planning on doing anything with Ron but it just came naturally when I was writing the last chapter so I'm rolling with it !_

_Happy reading friends ! PixieWillow x_

**July 1st :**

"_Fine. Malfoy. Draco Malfoy is the father of my baby."_

"_WHAT?!" Hermione heard someone scream. She felt like she had just died inside. Ron had just walked back into her apartment. _

Everyone turned towards the door. All Hermione could think was that she was about to lose everything she had. All of her friends would hate her because of one drunken mistake. It was obvious that Ron was angry. But he seemed angrier than he should have been. She couldn't wrap her head around it. She was so tired of crying, but looking at Ron's face made her break down once again. She hadn't thought that she even had any tears left in her body to cry.

"I'm so, so sorry. I never expected it or planned it! It just happened. I can't take it back but I promise you that I would if I could Ron," cried Hermione, already sounding defeated, as if she wasn't expecting Ron to forgive her.

"How could you be such a slut Hermione? I thought that you were different to other girls but you're just the same as everyone else. You know what? You disgust me." Harry was shocked that he just sat there staring as his bestfriend left the flat. Ginny was desperately trying to comfort a wailing Hermione, who felt like her whole world was falling apart.

"It's going to be ok Mione. I'll always be here for you. You can't listen to a word Ron says. He just wanted to be the one to father your children, it's jealousy," rambled Ginny, not realising that Hermione had no idea about Ron's feelings for her.

Hermione choked on her tears, completely confused about what Ginny had just said. "What do you mean Ron wanted to father my children?" she exclaimed, almost too shocked to entirely understand. "Ron likes me in that way?"

"Do you honestly think he would have reacted like that if he didn't? He was completely over the line, but it was because he loves you so much. He just expected you to always be there for him when he was ready for a relationship" Ginny told her distraught bestfriend. The mother-to-be was surprised that she had never noticed. Apparently she was extremely intelligent but she had no common sense whatsoever.

"I never knew," she exclaimed, "but I've never felt the same way."

"Best not dwell on it Hermione, it's too late now anyway," said Harry, trying to soothe the pregnant nineteen year old.

"Do you two not hate me? I made such a terrible, terrible mistake," wondered Hermione. She couldn't understand why they were still here, comforting her.

"How could we hate you? You're our bestfriend Mione," stated Harry as if it was an undeniable fact. Hermione was so relieved that all she could do was hung him as tightly as possible. "You should get to bed. Tomorrow we'll have to think about how to deal with this."

"You mean, you're going to help me?" inquired Hermione, too relieved for words.

"Of course we'll help you dumbie," said Ginny, almost shouting at her bestfriend.

The couple helped Hermione to bed, tucked her in and left her in peace. Hermione was utterly exhausted and dreamt of little blond babies.

When Hermione woke up the next morning, it took her a while to remember what had happened the day before. It hit her like a rock. She knew that Harry and Ginny were coming over to discuss what was going to happen next at lunch time, so in the mean time she decided to have a relaxing bubble bath. Her muscles definitely needed it. By the time Hermione was dressed and ready for the day, her bestfriends were already waiting in the living room. She wasn't sure what she was going to do yet and it reassured her to be able to talk through it with her friends.

They talked about what had happened exactly two months before, trying to understand how Hermione had let this happen. They were never degrading though, despite still being shocked at what they were learning. They already knew that Hermione would never be able to get rid of the baby, that much had been obvious from the start. They convinced her however that it wasn't fair to Malfoy, even if he wasn't the nicest person in the world, to keep him out of the information. Being the father, he had just as much place in decision making as Hermione did. They decided that the best thing to do would be to go directly to him. Being colleagues, Harry knew where he lived.

"Do you need us to come with you Hermione?" he asked, hoping to reassure her.

"As much as I might need you there, I think that it's more respectful to Malfoy to go on my own. Thank you though Harry, you don't know how much your offer means to me," replied Hermione. She was still surprised by how well her friends were taking her news. When she had asked him, Harry had simply stated that Malfoy wasn't as bad as he seemed and Hermione just had to believe him. He would know better than her anyway.

That afternoon, she apparated to Malfoy's apartment and found that she actually recognised it to some extent. She had some memories of that night apparently. Afraid that she would chicken out, she knocked on the door as soon as she got there, not sure that she would have stayed if she'd given herself the time to think about it. When Malfoy opened the door she wasn't prepared for what she was met with. There, looking weary, was a shirtless Malfoy. She couldn't help but stare at his chest. She shook her head to clear it.

"Um.. Hello.." she said timidly, which was entirely out of character. She couldn't seem to confront this man in her usual manner, which surprised not only herself but Malfoy as well.

"Can I help you Granger? Have you come to bump into me again?" Hermione couldn't tell which incident he was talking about.

"I... I have something to tell you," she blurted out, "can I come in? You may want to sit down.."

"Well, if it's that important, I suppose so," replied the tall blond, raising an eyebrow at his visitor. It was weird to see him without his trademark scowl on his face. He looked almost beautiful. Almost.

"I don't know how to say this without making you angry at me, Malfoy. So, I read up on it -"

"You know that doesn't surprise me at all, Granger" he remarked with a half smile on his face. Hermione couldn't believe that Malfoy was actually smiling at her.

Before she could chicken out she blurted it to his face: "I'm pregnant with your child, Malfoy."

The smile left his face, but his scowl didn't resurface as Hermione had expected it to. It seems that all her predictions were wrong at the moment. Malfoy's face was completely and utterly blank. He looked almost comical. She wasn't sure what to do. She had figured that he would be angry with her. She had expected him to scream, to not believe her. This, she had not expected.

"Malfoy, are you in there? Did you understand what I said?" That woke him up. He raised his eyebrow at her. Hermione had to admit that the action made him look quite appealing. She must have been losing her mind from all the stress.

"I don't know what you thought, Granger," he replied, "but I'm in no way deaf."

There it was again. Humour in his words. Hermione was dumb-founded. It must have been visible on her face because he just stared at her and started laughing. He was laughing at HER. Hermione didn't think she'd ever seen Malfoy do anything other than scowl at her or snicker mischevously. She was beyond shell shocked by this point.

"Well then Granger, if you are truly carrying the next Malfoy, I suppose that we are going to be seeing a lot more of each other in the near future," he exclaimed after having calmed down.

"Are you serious? You're not angry at me?" she inquired, expecting him to explode soon.

"Do I not look serious? Because I am utterly serious," he replied, "don't be mistaken, Granger. I'm by no means in love with you. I don't even like you. But I am a Malfoy and therefore it is my duty to take care of both you and my child. I hope to give my children a better childhood than I ever could have dreamed about.i"

It must have been obvious how shocked she was, because he continued: "Not act so surprised Granger. I'm doing my duty as a man."

All she could do was nod at that. "Do you not care that I'm a muggleborn? Your child won't be a pureblood, Malfoy," she reminded him.

"Does that make it not my child? I will look after it either way. Blood doesn't matter."

If Hermione heard one more surprising remark coming out of Malfoy's mouth she might just faint. From the minute she found out about her pregnancy she had been prepared to be a single mother. It was a lot to take in for her.

"I trust that you'll move in with me in the next few days, yes? I have a spare room that you will be able to occupy," continued Malfoy.

At that Hermione started to feel light headed. At the risk of sounding like a complete idiot, she replied: "I.. Uh... What?"

Malfoy just stared in reply, before adding: "I would like my child, and therefore it's mother, to be near me, even before it is born. It's the right thing to do. I need to be close in case of emergency and what is closer than being in the same apartment?"

Hermione had to agree that what he was saying made sense, but that didn't mean that it wouldn't be difficult to accept.

"Can I have time to think about this? Everything is going so fast, I feel a bit lost," she admitted.

"Of course, Granger. Just send me an owl when you're ready. I know you want to move in with me, you've always loved me really," he mused, a wicked glint in his eye. "Conceiving my child was obviously the best thing to ever happen to you, we both know it."

Hermione, finally starting to get her wits back, replied, the same wicked glint in her eye, which was not a regular occurrence for her: "I can't say it was the worst night I've ever had," before standing up to leave.

Malfoy led her to the door and as a goodbye said: "Don't forget to owl me, Granger."

Hermione wasn't sure what she had just gotten herself into.


End file.
